Peter, Paul and the Harvest

Mr. Ellis called in this morning with this reflection....he has been really blessed by the efforts of our students individually but even more so as teams working together as unto the Lord. He has seen "Peter" preparing the soil, and "Paul" planting the seed and then there will be those who will follow this work through with to the "Harvest". Our students are really "Getting It!", they are not doing this week of service for themselves, not for Mr. Ellis, and not even for their parents...but they are indeed serving as unto the Lord. Your students have been a real blessing to the leadership team!

Yesterday they divided into two teams and played tag between the ALC and the All Saints Aids Camp. They once again rose to the occasion and worked and served very hard. A gravel trail was laid at the ALC camp and wheel chairs were distributed at the Aids Camp. The residents at All Saints were so overcome with this amazing provision that they were speechless. Two camp residents that some of you may have heard about were recipients of those wheel chairs...Miss Moxey and Tony! It was a special time for our students to be part of presenting this abundant provision. The groups were able to meet personally with over 30 camp residents and simply spent the time listening and offering words of encouragement to the folks in residence there. One of the ladies expressed to the first team that visited that she would "run a mile for a banana" and Miss Moxey happened to mention that she was yearning for a Sprite....well our little group of listeners passed on this info to the next group who arrived at the camp for their visit with enough bananas and Sprites to last these ladies a whole week! It is amazing how just such a little act of kindness can be so special! The team returned to camp for their cultural experience of Bahamian cuisine which included the famous Bahamas version of Mac and Cheese and conch fritters.

The time around the campfire once again was very special. This campfire has really served as their altar for the week, the time and place where our students have an opportunity to seek and meet the Lord. Today they are preparing gift packets of toiletries and supplies that were collected at the school to give to the students at the Youth Hostel. Again, simple expressions of love and care by providing these kids with hair brushes, socks and shampoo! Thank you to all of you who made this possible. The team will visit the Straw market today, have lunch at Ft. Montegue and have some time at the Beach.

All for now. Tomorrow will be your airport run and the "happy happy joy joy" family reunion time! Parents PLEASE make plans to park your cars and COME INTO the airport to pick up your students. They will not be brought out to the curb.

All for now!
Bahama Mama

Team Adelaide Powers On

Great reports continue to come in from our team on the field. To begin with I am very happy to be able to tell you that they have not received any bad weather this week. There was a short "drizzle rain" delay for Wednesday morning but that delay only lasted an hour. They didn't get any of the tornado watch action we had here in Broward county and they even didn't get anything from that big rain storm we had on Monday night. All that said...after the short delay they headed back out for a ministry day at a local Haitian pastor's home and his church. The group divided into two groups and painted and cleaned at both locations. Our students really took extra care and did an excellent job. While the team was working at the church a group of students began a conversation with one of the locals who was observing their work. The gentlemen shared with them the sense of despair and discouragement that he carries with him daily. He then pushed the conversation toward a spiritual debate. With one of our team leaders standing by, this group of students went on to share about the hope they have in Christ. The man stopped debating and began listening and the conversation led to one of our students asking this man if he would like to receive the free gift of eternal life offered by Christ. He did and there was a time of rejoicing! This student then gave the man his own Bible and the group took him over and introduced him to a church member in an effort to get him plugged in to the church. Our team really felt that this was a divine appointment.

The time that night around the campfire had the team considering the challenge of how to be aware of the needs of those around you. Certainly for this week the physical needs of the people has been evident and the team has been very willing and blessed to be the hands of Jesus in the sharing of their physical support. The challenge will come as they return home and continue to be sensitive to the needs of others. It may not be something as easy to see as a home that needs to be painted or an area that needs to be cleaned but rather hearts that are empty or lonely or confused. The challenge was then presented to them to consider their own personal commitment to God and if in fact they are serious about this commitment. Mr. Randy Grebe who is the founder of the ALC was in town and joined them around the campfire. He shared with our students that is was when he was 13 years old and in the 8th grade that the Lord gave him a vision for the ALC, for a camp that would provide an opportunity for young people to learn about the things of God. Mr. Ellis then shared that he was also 13 when he first led someone to the Lord and that was the year that he knew that he was called to be in youth ministry. The team leaders gave the students an opportunity to really consider the level of their own commitment and many students prayed to rededicate their lives in service to the Lord. It was a special time just between each individual kid and God, a time for quiet consideration and reflection.

More ministry opportunities to come: Service project at the ALC, a visit to the All Saints Camp, (where they have an opportunity to distribute several wheel chairs donated by a CCA parent), a visit to the Youth Hostel and an outing with the kids from the Youth Hostel to the beach. Updates expected on these events sometime tomorrow.

All for now!
Bahama Mama

A Picture is Worth 1000 Words!

Adelaide Experiences the Feast of Nations

When the team went out yesterday for their visit to Adelaide the team leaders knew that the plan was to present the Feast of Nations at the evening meal, because of that they packed a lighter lunch for the team. Instead of packing two sandwiches for each student, they only packed one and by the end of the day our guys were pretty hungry. They arrived back at the camp ready to head directly to the dining hall. They were met with THE deck of cards and the Feast was on! Many had heard about this experience but were not expecting it so early in the trip. As expected there was a wide range of reactions. There were those at the KING table that desperately wanted to give away their spot or to share their provisions but they were not allowed. Another at the KING table really relished the opportunity and completely enjoyed the experience...every last bite. Another was very quiet but quietly received and enjoyed the provision. Many in the rest of the group were just really MAD. Some students begged to be able to return to their cabins so they could simply eat the candy and junk food they had packed. One student was overheard as saying, "I paid $500 to be treated like this!" Another said, "I have Character Training in the morning and I need my strength!"

For more specifics on what is involved in the Feast of Nations, please refer to the earlier post that was listed for the earlier trip. For this post let me simply say that there were three groups. Once group of 4 ate a steak banquet, a second group of about 12 had beans and rice and the rest of the group had rice and dirty water. (There was cinnamon sprinkled in the water but the visual was there!)

After dinner they all gathered at the Camp Fire for their debrief time. Mr. Ellis really encouraged the students to reconsider their focus. He was able to point out that was he was hearing was a lot of "it's all about me!" They discussed the issues of hunger and talked about the feeling of hunger that many had in their stomachs at that time. They talked about their opportunities and the provisions and gifts that they had by virtue of the families that they are born into and the opportunities they have in the U.S. One of the leaders shared about all the choices that we have and encouraged the students to think about those who have limited choices or no choice. It is not an easy thing to readjust our thinking on these issues. It will be easy to understand the lessons right now, and they were encouraged to consider ways to remember their feelings and impressions once they return to the "land of choices". After the discussion they were offered extra rice and beans, salad and leftovers but many chose to go to bed right away and remember the feeling of hunger.

It was then "Lights Out" and off to sleep! This morning they were up bright and early, fed a hearty breakfast and then the plan was for them to go back to the home of the Haitian pastor that Team Gambier visited last week. They will divide into two ministry groups and send a team to the Pastor's home and a team to the church.

I have received some pictures from the field and will post them as soon as I can figure out the posting process. I like to leave you hanging.....so that's all for now.

Sincerely, Bahama Mama

Adelaide Action

Phone update from the Bahamas just in! The report from the field is that the team is doing VERY WELL! Yesterday they visited the community of Adelaide where our students spent the day loving on and playing with the school children of this community. They did face painting, and played games, braided hair, and offered themselves as a "living sacrifice" of love to these children. The principal of the school was overcome with the joy and the love that was extended by our students to their students. This school is so blessed that our teams have faithfully come back year after year and this day is indeed a highlight of the year for their school. Our kids gave all of themselves physically, spiritually and emotionally in service to loving on these students. The team is happy to report that the basketball court and facilities that our teams painted last year is in great shape and looking good! Our 2007 team was prepared with supplies and sporting equipment to give as a gift to the school. After sharing lunch time together with the Bahamian students had to return to class and then our team went to work on clearing and cleaning up the area. The rakes came out, trash bags were opened and our students scoured the area raking and cleaning and picking up debris and trash. They had a great time on the bus reflecting and sharing about the days events and returned to camp, happy, exhausted, dirty, tired and hungry! What until you hear what happened next......

To be continued....Bahama Mama

Team Adelaide Scheduled Events

We will need to wait until late this evening for an official update from the team as they were out and about early this morning and won't be coming back to camp tonight until dinner. Thought I would share with you a bit of the basic plan for this first day on the field. Our team members will be visiting the community of Adelaide which is a village located in a rural area much like Gambier where our ealier team visited and served. They will be taking on various service projects to help support the school as well as the community. The plan is to also provide a fun day at the school for the students of this village. It will be a great first day introduction to their mission and will be a great opportunity to meet and connect with these precious students. Let me also take this opportunity to let you know that the plan for the dinner tonight will be The Feast of Nations....you can read the earlier post on this event from the previous team's experience to get an idea of what is in store for your student this evening. Will they pick the KING card? OR the Heart? or perhaps will they be a part of the last group? Regardless, this will be a good time to pray for your students that their hearts will be open to receive the various lessons presented to them with this experience....I will keep you posted.
Bahama Mama

Safe and Sound on the Ground

Many of you have probably been eagerly checking the blog site with great anticipation for this post. Well wait no more and remember --no news is good news! There is a bit of time lag between the events and the leaders making their phone call update. Just a quick post to let you know that Team Adelaide has arrived safely. All team members and luggage are accounted for and the group is presently unpacking their bags and getting settled into camp. Once they get their bearings they will gather for dinner and then after dinner the plan is for them to be introduced to the Planetarium at the ALC. The ministry day tomorrow will have them visiting a rural community school in the village of Adelaide where they will provide their services to the community and spend some special time with the students! The plan is to hit the ground running. More news to come.
Sincerely, Bahama Mama

Team Gambier Arrives Safely

Our adventurous Team Gambier arrived safely right on time last night at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. The gate and baggage claim areas were filled with smiling faces as student travelers were reunited with happy parents. The great thing about a trip like this is that families are able to realize how much they all love and miss each after a time apart. (It actually works both ways!) The other great news was that ALL the luggage arrived along with all of our travelers.

It will probably take a while for your student to completely process and to download this past week's experience to you. It is our hope that this has been an enlightening as well as encouraging experience for your missionary and will be a great memory for them in the years to come. Please continue to join with us in prayer as we prepare to send out our next team. It is our prayer that this coming week will be a time for great ministry as well as personal insight and growth. Our next team will gather at 6 a.m. Monday morning at the school in the area just outside the HUB. They will be known as Team Adelaide.....let the adventure begin!
Bahama Mama

Gambier Update Finally In!

Well families....it seems that the schedule of events and activities for our team is so full that there is barely time to call in a report. I am happy to report that the team was able to take a breather long enough to get in this latest update!

Friday was another great day filled with new adventures and great ministry opportunities. The day began with a fun tourist excursion to the Straw Market. The students were able to get a taste of the Bahamas tourist culture by visiting the shops and stalls along the famous Nassau Straw Market. The weather has been great and it was just plain fun to explore the area together, get some fresh air and shop! The team certainly needed a little down time to recharge and relax before jumping back into their team ministry action mode. That afternoon had them back on the bus and headed for a visit to the Youth Hostel. The Youth Hostel rovides temporary housing and support for children who are in need of intervention and assistance from a domestic family crisis situation. There is a wide range of ages of the children who are currently placed in the Youth Hostel. They are a group of children who welcome the opportunity of a visit from young people and a group who would greatly benefit from some special attention. They long for the chance to experience the joy of friendship and fun. This group of children in the Youth Hostel have been anticipating this visit from our team all the week and they were certainly not disappointed. Our team took them to the beach for an afternoon of fun and play in the sand and the water and treated them to as much pizza as they could eat for lunch! Many of our team members really connected with these children and were able to be the hands and heart of Jesus to these kids. Hearts were touched and special bonds were established. There were many tearful farewells when it was time to get back on the bus. Last night at the campfire our students had an opportunity to reflect on the differences of experiences of the day...the contrast from tourist to servant, the contrast from needing stuff to needing love. It all made for some impactful conversations around the campfire. The students received the challenge from the leaders to consider where they were in their own understanding of their relationship with Christ. Certainly they have the head knowledge but has that connection made a impact on their heart response. It was truly a powerful night.

Of course you can't have a campfire without s'mores and then there was a visit from the Ape Man....that will be better told to you directly from your students. :) This new Saturday morning brought with it the anticipation of their return home to their loving families! They are presently doing a final round of cleaning in preparation for the next team, scrubbing, polishing and packing and then loading on the bus just after noon for the adventure of the return trip home.

Check the previous blog posts for flight information and be sure and check all the blog comments. One of our parents has provided you with extra contact information for Bahamasair and there is also a blog comment from a teacher on some homework relief!

All for now. Bahama Mama

Team Gambier Gives 100%

Word from the field was that yesterday was an all around GREAT day! The team worked hard from sun-up to sun-down! They were involved in work projects that directly benefited the ALC. The majority of the vocabulary used to described their efforts included: moving rocks, lifting rocks, hauling rocks, pushing wheelbarrows, building pathways, moving gravel, clearing trails, cleaning windows, scraping paint and all this with NO COMPLAINTS! The afternoon experience took them out of their physical work mode and moved them into spiritual ministry mode as they broke off into two ministry teams and visited the area Aids Camp. Our students were struck with the simplicity of the living conditions for these residents, many who live in a simple 10 x 10 room with a bed and the basic necessities. The students spent this time listening to stories and sharing companionship and simply lending a listening ear to the residents. One student commented..."this was the best thing we did all week!" The countenance of the residents in the community ranged from an attitude of joy, acceptance and gratefulness to that of despair and heartache. Our students realized that this range in outlook was influenced by their understanding of a relationship with Christ. One leader shared that he was deeply touched by a group of student's ability to verbalize and articulate the gospel message in a clear and concise way as many students took the bold step to share about the hope they have in Christ. They were able to share a message of unconditional love and acceptance that did not require "having to get my life right" before coming to God. This portion of the trip certainly had a significant impact on the team. When they returned to camp that night they then participated in Bahamian cultural "food" experience. The menu for the evening included fried chicken/peas and rice, Bahamian mac/cheese and authentic conch fritters. After dinner they THEN experienced the ALC planetarium with cushioned seats and air-conditioning. There was another debrief time around the camp fire and then went to their cabins for "Lights Out" aka "Pass Out"! :)

Many of you are asking for pictures...please know that Bahama Mama is begging for pics and will post them as soon as she can talk the team into accessing the technology available. She will continue to ask on your behalf. That's all for now......